After almost two hours of discussion last week, the Santa Rosa County Commission voted 4-1 to give The ZOO Northwest Florida a one-time donation of $125,000.

“In my heart and in my mind and in my prayers, I know this is the right thing to do,”  Commissioner Tom Stewart said at the commission’s regular meeting Aug. 28.
Zoo officials had said the Gulf Coast Zoological Society Board of Directors likely would have voted this week to begin closing the cash-strapped zoo if the county hadn’t provided some support. Executive Director Danyelle Lantz said $125,000 would help it stay open through November.

 

For more on this story, see the Sept. 4 issue of Navarre Press or subscribe online